suraj.sun writes: Justice department lawsuit argues that Oracle's government customers--a wide array of agencies, including the State Department, the Energy Department, and the Justice Department itself--got deals "far inferior" to those the enterprise software giant gave to its commercial clients.

The allegations stem from a software deal between Oracle and the federal General Services Administration that the Justice Department says involved "hundreds of millions of dollars in sales" and that ran from 1998 to 2006. Under the contract, Oracle was required to inform the GSA when commercial discounts improved and to offer those same discounts to government buyers.

"We take seriously allegations that a government contractor has dealt dishonestly with the United States," said Tony West, assistant attorney general for the civil division of the Department of Justice, in a statement.